Beer shakeup: Houston's groundbreaking brewery makes another big move

Look for Fancy Lawnmower and Santo in cans by the end of February.
Courtesy image

A new canning line can package up to 160 cans per minute.
Courtesy photo

Houstonians can't get enough Saint Arnold beer. At least, that's the most obvious conclusion to draw from the company's announcement that it shipped a record 66,000 barrels in 2014. That's a substantial 8,000 barrel increase over 2013 and a 35,000 barrel increase over the last four years.

Still, the now 20-year old brewery isn't resting on its laurels. "We have several new beers in the pipeline for 2015 and are currently busy putting together our canning line," Saint Arnold founder Brock Wagner said in a statement. "We are focused on continuing to foster the community of craft beer where Saint Arnold is sold.”

"We have been pushed by our customers to offer our beers in cans. We plan to package our top sellers, and possibly add a can-only beer."

Starting in February, Saint Arnold will fire up a new canning line with a 20-head filler that's capable of packaging up to 160 cans per minute.

"We have been pushed by our customers to offer our beers in cans,” Wagner adds. “We plan to package our top sellers, and possibly add a can-only beer before the end of 2015."

The brewery's two most popular beers, Fancy Lawnmower and Santo, will be the first in cans. Summer Pils will join the lineup in April.

Meanwhile, the next Divine Reserve frenzy happens Jan. 26 with the release of DR15, which is a Russian imperial stout brewed with the same recipe as the highly-regarded DR5. Expect the usual long lines at popular retailers like Spec's and Twitter tips on where to find the highly-coveted limited release.